Profile: Northgate Market

Overview

Northgate Markets, a family-owned grocer with 34 locations in Southern California, responded to Inglewood residents’ request for better access to healthy food.  Located southwest of Los Angeles, Inglewood is a diverse community, with large African American and Latino populations.  Coming out of the Great Recession, the Inglewood community has continued to face economic hardships, with 21 percent of the population living below the poverty level, compared to 14 percent statewide. With funding from the California FreshWorks Fund (CAFWF), Northgate was able to expand and open 30,000 square feet of new grocery retail, improving food access for 105,000 nearby residents. Northgate also serves as a critical economic anchor for the area, creating 125 new jobs, most of which are held by local residents.

Profile: Circle Food Store

Overview

The reopening of Circle Food Store in New Orleans is part of the city's commitment to improve the business and economic infrastructure of the Seventh Ward after the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina.  A predominately African American, low- to moderate-income community, many residents struggle to access healthy food. With funding from the New Orleans Fresh Food Retailer Initiative (FFRI) along with an Economic Development Fund grant from the city and a loan from the Louisiana Office of Community Development, Circle Food Store owner Dwayne Boudreaux was able to finance the reopening and renovation of Circle Foods and help create 65 full- and part-time jobs for the community with 95 percent of these positions filled by local residents.

Profile: Bottino’s ShopRite Vineland

Overview

Bottino's is a family-run independent grocery chain in southern New Jersey. In the market for a new location to replace their small and obsolete Vineland supermarket, they found property located on a blighted commercial corridor which led into Vineland’s historic downtown area. Officials recognized that a new supermarket at this location could catalyze the revitalization of this area of the city. With financial assistance from The Reinvestment Fund and the New Jersey Food Access Initiative, Bottino's was able to open a 74,000-square-foot supermarket.

Profile: Fare & Square

Overview

Fare & Square is the culmination of numerous attempts to attract healthy food retailers to the severely distressed city of Chester, PA. Owned and operated by Philabundance, a nonprofit hunger relief organization, this 16,000-square-foot, nonprofit grocery store offers shoppers convenient access to “good food right around the corner” that has not been available in a grocery store format for more than a decade.

Pages